Note: Just in case anyone has been wondering, there are a lot of things in this story that are screwy in terms of volcab and name spelling (yeah yeah, I spelled Rogers wrong in the beginning-I really had no idea what I was doing in this fandom back then) This will be edited and polished up after completion, so no worries!

I said this would be done by now, but obviously that hasn't happened! I'm working on it as bets I can, and we're getting into the final stretch now so yay!

Bruce, for one, thought things were going better than expected. Part of him had thought that he was going to be the only one left from the Avengers Initiative when he sent Clint and Thor off. He felt a bit like a coward for staying behind, but he and the Other Guy hadn't completely come to terms with each other yet, and the Hulk didn't seem to understand that the horsemen were not to be touched and that killing Loki wasn't a good idea. So he locked himself away to focus on other things: pinpointing horsemen radiation, scouring data files and security camera footage with SHIELD agents to see if Death had shown up anywhere (not that they knew what to look for).

They listened into the team radios as Tony and Natasha had their showdown and Bruce couldn't help but worry. Fighting amongst themselves had always been a point of concern for him—and part of his hesitation to join the Avengers in the first place. They were powerful people that shouldn't be together, they should be galaxies apart from each other. Not just because they were prone to being aggressive and dominant, but because they attracted things. He didn't think the horsemen would be the last thing to plague them—if they survived, that is. Other creatures would show up sooner or later and Loki was child's play compared to what had to be out there. Chitauri foot soldiers had been a suitable foe, and they were common grunts in their army.

Perhaps that was just his nervous nature coming out. Even so, it didn't change the fact that they had no idea what was going in their universe and that they were extremely lucky they had gotten the God of Thunder before the God of Mischief. If Thor hadn't decided to come down to earth, they might all be under Loki's control. Maybe that was why the horsemen were coming out, to get rid of earth before something else did. That was how the apocalypse was supposed to go, right? He didn't really know and had been contemplating things of that nature when every alarm in SHIELD headquarters started going off.

The Other Guy put up a pretty good fight to get out and see what was going on for himself, but Bruce had managed to fight him down while going to see what was happening. His immediate guess had been Loki, and he'd been right. The god had vanished without so much as a trace. Security feeds showed him slumped against the wall of his cell one moment, wake up from an apparent snooze (Bruce doubted he was actually sleeping) and then…gone. The muzzle they had somehow thought would actually contain him was the only thing left behind, but Loki himself didn't leave so much as a fingerprint on the glass of his cage. Not entirely unexpected.

Soon after that they figured out what had happened to Thor and Bruce's immediate inkling was that Loki had something to do with it. In hindsight, he probably did, but not on the level he'd been considering. Clint had told him that Thor had some sort of vision about caves. A few minutes later and they'd figured out that Loki was talking about Mammoth Caves. The perfect place for an array of traps, and much too suffocating for the Other Guy. He knew it was a trap—they all did. Yet he packed up all the stuff—Mjolnir, Clint's bow, Natasha's Black Widow outfit (Clint insisted that he would need a wardrobe change), Steve's suit and shield, Tony's Mark VII armor, and a first aid kit (pointless, he knew). Within an hour he was on a plane headed for Kentucky.

And now he was here, standing in the wreckage of what used to be the welcome center for Mammoth Caves. Thick lumber posts had been splintered to bits, the roof had mostly collapsed, and a giant poster about bat conservation was still burning in the entryway. Nick Fury had gotten there first and Bruce didn't ask if anyone died. He really didn't want to know. Seeing it was enough, and judging by the lack of press and overabundance of agents, this wasn't Death's doing. If it had been, Fury wouldn't have allowed anyone on the premises. This was Loki.

"Is he still here?" Bruce asked as he picked through the rubble to where Fury stood in the wreckage where he guessed the welcome desk had once been.

"Does it look like he's still here?" Fury cast him a sideways glance

"Well he's still around here somewhere. Thor said he saw him in the cave."

"Fantastic," the director said with a sarcastic smile. "That's wonderful."

Bruce swallowed uncomfortably, glancing around the massive building. Though, it was actually just a structure now, since it was missing the whole back wall it technically wasn't a building anymore. Pieces of debris were still falling from overhead, but Bruce wasn't really worried about getting hit by anything. The Other Guy was something of a hard hat for him. Fury didn't seem too worried about it either and Bruce wouldn't be surprised if concrete pieces avoided hitting him because the director's anger created some sort of forcefield.

"When's everyone getting here?" Fury asked suddenly.

Bruce tugged at his collar. "Clint's getting here any minute. I haven't gotten an update on Tony." Tony, Steve, and Natasha had stayed at Churchill Downs a little longer to deal with something. Tony hadn't really explained and hung up before any of them could ask any questions. All they knew was that Steve had been bitten, but not to worry because he was acting fine (Bruce worried anyway) and that they had it under control (he doubted that). But they had no choice, Tony cut off all radio access.

"They better hurry the hell up," Fury grumbled, glaring at a dangling piece of timber and both of them watched it fall and crack in half on impact with the ground. "Agent Hill," the director called, and Maria turned from a group of other agents and headed over.

"Yeah?"

"Remind me to talk to Thor about magic when this is all over," Fury said.

"Sir, Thor doesn't know any magic," Maria replied calmly.

"I didn't ask whether or not Thor knew magic, I asked to you to remind me to talk to him about it when this is all over."

"Of course, sir." Agent Hill nodded curtly and Fury dismissed her with a blink of his eye. Bruce shifted uncomfortably. He didn't really want to be here anymore. He had always hated being around people in uniform. He'd never really trusted SHIELD in the first place either, and the only reason he agreed to join the Avengers—though it was more forced than anything—was because he had kind of wanted to meet the rest of them. A collection of freaks and superhumans, just like him. Except they could control their powers, Tony had even built himself his own powers. Even so, he had wanted to see if he could actually do some good in the world. He still wasn't sure if he'd succeeded.

Fury suddenly looked to the sky and a moment later Bruce heard the whurring of chopper blades and both men immediately headed for the exit to meet Clint and Thor. The helicopter settled on an impossibly small grass clearing, and for a moment Bruce thought that one of the blades might send a tree heading their way. SHIELD helicopters were built to withstand alien monsters and mutants, so he was betting that the tree would snap before the blades did. But the pilot did his job and landed safely.

When Clint emerged from the belly of the chopper Bruce knew that the events that had taken place in Michigan were probably worse than the archer had said they were. Barton's eyes were dead and his entire body looked fatigued. So much for that good night's sleep the day before. Thor didn't look too much better, and Bruce noticed that the thunder god looked extremely pale. His left arm hung limp at his side, useless in any sort of fight. Bruce swallowed thickly. This wasn't going to be good.

"Evening, Director," Clint greeted, nodding to Fury.

"Looks like you've had a long day," Fury said, returning the gesture.

"Yeah, I'm about ready to end it." Clint looked to the destroyed welcome center. "Loki?"

"Yes."

Thor flinched, and a wave of prickling discomfort started up Bruce's spine. He didn't like seeing other people in pain—emotional or physical, but Clint either didn't notice or didn't care.

"You know, I kinda thought he was going to come around. How many casualties?"

Fury shrugged. "No clue. Haven't counted 'em yet. Somewhere around two dozen."

"Kids?"

"A lot of kids."

Silence stretched between the four of them and Bruce was almost positive he could see Thor shaking, but he couldn't tell if it was from fear, anger, or sadness. Maybe all three. The scientist decided not to dwell on the subject of dead children, knowing that it would only succeed in making him angry and upset. He needed to stay calm and not get too antsy before Tony and crew showed up.

"I brought your stuff," he said stupidly. Clint blinked and looked over as if just noticing his presence.

"Come on, it's over here." Bruce started for one of the SHIELD cars and Clint followed with a grim expression. The air was burning his lungs as silence came upon them again, as if all of his words were being smoked out before they could leave his throat. It probably had something to do with the ash that fogged the perimeter of the building. Probably.

He stopped at the door and swung it open before leaning down to pop the trunk. Everything was tucked neatly inside, ready and waiting for its owners. Clint's face relaxed a bit once he grabbed hold of his bow, and Bruce immediately felt better too. Thor approached slowly,and grabbed Mjolnir with his working hand. For a moment Bruce thought he wouldn't lift it, but then Thor slid his wrist through the leather strap and swung the hammer up into his palm. Thor's face didn't brighten.

"Did you bring my clothes?" Clint asked. His voice sounded muffled and distant. Bruce nodded and rummaged through the trunk until he found the purple and black outfit. The archer nodded a wordless thanks before stripping down and slipping into his outfit. Bruce decided hat he hated silence, but Thor spoke before he did.

"Did he say anything before he escaped?"

"No," said Bruce. "Well, I don't know. I wasn't there. But the security feeds showed him sitting there and the next minute he was gone."

"Tell him what you saw, Thor," Clint urged as he pulled on his archery wristbands. They probably had a fancy name, but Bruce didn't know anything about archery.

Thor cleared his throat. "I saw my brother in a dark place. This, the Cave of Mammoths. Death was present, and I could not see anything but Loki. I could feel the horseman's powers—it was a colder presence than Jotunheim."

"Jotunheim is a really cold planet-thing," Clint interrupted.

Thor nodded once before continuing, "Loki told me that I was to bring my companions. That we would find Death here, and that I would find him. He also said that we would all be exposed."

Bruce thought he was going to say more, but the quiet rushed in again. "Exposed? Is that a threat?"

"I do not know. After he spoke to me, I was sent away."

"Maybe we shouldn't go inside there. It's got to be a trap."

"I'm pretty sure that's the point," Clint said with a grim expression. Their eyes locked, but Bruce couldn't look away. "You ever been hunting before, Banner?"

"No. It never really seemed appealing to go shoot animals for fun," he replied, shifting awkwardly on his feet.

Clint chuckled. "Somehow I knew you'd say that. Anyway, when you hunt with a bow, it's different. You can't just shoot anywhere and expect the deer to fall. Your shot has to be strong, clean, and go right through the heart." The archer ran his finger up the bowstring. "It's pretty easy to miss the heart though, and you often hit the lung. Then the deer runs away, and you have to chase it. Sometimes they run for miles, other times they only go a few feet. But they all come to the realization that they're going to die."

Bruce didn't really like this story. Thor didn't seem to either, but Clint went on anyway.

"And when they come to that realization, they do one of two things. The either fight back, or give up. There's no more escaping, or running around. What we've got here is us with an arrow in our lung. I don't know about you, but I'm done running away from the horsemen, from Loki, and I think they're done running too. This is gonna end here—it has to. Too many people are already dead."

Bruce knew he was right—but walking into a trap knowing it was a trap? What if Death wasn't in there at all, if it was just Loki and they all ended up dead for nothing? Another hunk of debris fell in the distance, and the sharp crack of splintering wood send shivers up his spine. Kids. Children died here today because they hadn't been able to hold on to Loki. Innocent lives lost and claimed by Death—gone, all because of their unwillingness to deal with the horsemen head on. Clint was right, they couldn't wait around anymore.

He readjusted his glasses. "I'm in."

Clint just smiled at him. "Yeah, I thought so."

A half hour later the sun had begun to dip, turning the sky bright orange. Bruce wasn't too worried about Tony, well, that's what he told Clint anyway. Clint, Thor, and Bruce helped position security camera at every (known) entrance to the caves on park property, which as something around fifteen. They helped clean up crews and Bruce tried not to think about how long Thor might have left. It had been something close to three hours since he'd been attacked, not that Bruce was counting.

"Sometimes I worry about them, ya know?" Clint said as he hoisted a piece of roof paneling up over his shoulder.

"Who?" Bruce asked, cocking a brow as he continued sweeping up glass shards.

"Natasha and Tony. And Steve, a little bit." The archer grunted as he tossed the paneling into the debris pile they'd started. "I mean, Natasha's a human. Tony's a human in a metal suit. I feel it sometimes too, like I'm the weak link. You and Thor? Clint snorted, "You guys are the big guys. I'm pretty sure Steve is up there more than the rest of us. The guy got blasted by Tony and didn't die. That's something."

Bruce shook his head. "Believe me, it's much better being human. I get to be one half the time—if you can even call it that."

"You're a human, Bruce," Clint chuckled. "Until you go green, of course."

The scientist gave a small smile. "I know I make a bigger deal out of it than he does, but I think Steve has it worst. I read some of the reports on him from after he was thawed out. There was one time he—"

A hellish roar sounded outside. Thor immediately dropped the piece of granite countertop in his hand and bolted for the door. Bruce and Clint started into a sprint after him. It was Tony's Ferrari screaming down the gravel road toward the debris field. Bruce bit his lip, anxious to see what they had found. When the car screeched to a stop, Tony tumbled out with the lights still on. He looked awful.

"Thank god," the billionaire huffed. He turned back to the car, "It's okay guys, Thor isn't dead."

Tony came up to the thunderer with a doll in his hand, one with hair that looked like it had been cut straight from Thor's head. The Aesir looked at it like it was a demon.

"Voodoo," Tony announced. "This little girl was carrying around doll versions of Thor, Steve, and I. She touches us, then her dad—who, in case you didn't know, is Death—makes creepy robot voodoo dolls." He turned back to Thor. "I'm giving this to Fury to hold on to. Sorry about your arm, by the way, I figured you'd want your heart working."

Thor just blinked at him. Bruce didn't know what to think. Voodoo dolls? That seemed a little pagan for the Biblical Apocalypse.

"So did you get Death then?" Clint asked in disbelief.

Natasha came up to stand next to Tony and shook her head. "He told us to meet him at the caves, then vanished. The horse was gone too—and the little girl. But we got the dolls, and I'm assuming after Death dies they won't work anymore."

"Assuming," Bruce grumbling.

"What happened?" Steve asked, looking over at the welcome center.

"Loki happened," Clint growled in response.

Silence settled in yet again as the Avengers looked at one another. They were all covered in dust and dirt from their respective travels, and all of them looked uneasy but alert. Finally, Thor stepped forward and grabbed Tony in a bear hug. The bilionaire began to shove him away, but it didn't really work until he started sputtering for breath.

"Thank you," Thor rumbled.

Tony slapped him on the shoulder a few times, "No problem, Care Bear. "

When the two finally broke apart, Tony turned to Bruce next and grabbed him in a rare hug. The scientist grunted in surprise, but then returned it awkwardly. It spurred a show of affection from all of them—even Natasha gave Clint a quick embrace. Maybe that's what happened when all of them were exhausted and literally dealing with Death.

"So," Steve said after their goodwill had been shared, "how are we going to do this?"